Cordelia and the Cowboy
by Sunnydalesis
Summary: Cordelia Chase is the average trust fund baby by day and a Slayer by night. When she loses the love of her life, she relies on the help of two enemies: Spike the Texas Slay-Shooter and Buffy Summers, the head cheerleader and Queen B of Sunnydale High.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

This story is inspired by what the show could've been originally: What if Cordelia was the Slayer and Buffy was the Queen Bee as originally intended? How different would Cowboy Spike be from his British counterpart? I hope you like this AU!

* * *

It was a dark and stormy night. Angel groaned in agony, stumbling out of his apartment as he felt his soul slipping away from him.

He looked up to the sky and screamed, "Cordy!"

Inside Angel's apartment, Cordelia Chase slept soundly, remembering the love that she and Angel shared mere hours ago.

###

 _The Factory_

"Once this rain clears up, I want y'all to patrol the streets," Spike said to his minions. Drusilla laid down on the table and shivered in excitement at the Texas twang that was prominent in his voice. "Plus two men on the door and down in the tunnels at all times, ya hear? I've about had it with surprises."

When the minions left, Spike turned his attention to Drusilla. "Feeling better, darlin?"

"I miss Texas," Drusilla said. "The stars are bigger and brighter there. I especially love the ones that fall."

"Nothing like a good meteor shower, my darlin' Dru," Spike said. "Can you see what happened to Angel?"

"Well, cowboy," Angel said in a very cocky voice, "he moves to New York and tries to fulfill that Broadway dream. It's tough sledding, but one day he's working in the chorus when the big star twists her ankle!"

Drusilla sat up and smiled at the sight of her sire. "My Angel!"

The Judge stood up to confront the dark haired vampire only to sense that there was no humanity left in him. Drusilla rejoiced at the return of her sire in his true form and Spike was just glad to have reinforcements. He tried not to cringe, however, at the way that Drusilla draped herself over Angelus as they formulated a plan with the Judge to destroy the Slayer.

###

 _Sunnydale High School Library_

Cordelia went straight from Angel's apartment to the library, knowing that her parents thought that she was sleeping over at Willow's. She walked in and found Jenny and Willow talking in one side of the stairs that led to the stacks, Xander and Buffy arguing on the other side of the stairs, and Wesley waiting for her, book in his hand. Everyone was relieved to see that their Slayer was safe.

"So Angel didn't come here?" Cordelia asked.

"Nope," Buffy said, popping her p with a smack of her lips. "No sign of the brooding bore-fest."

"I-Is the Judge...assembled?" Wesley asked.

Cordelia nodded. "He tried attacking me and Angel at the Factory. Angel and I managed to get away, but we split up cuz of last night's thunderstorm."

"I'm sure he'll come by," Willow said.

"Whatever," Cordelia said. "What's important is figuring out how to deal with the Judge. I mean, all I know is the whole no weapon forged can stop him and when I tried kicking him, I felt like I was touching a branding iron."

"I can go on the net," Jenny said.

"I can do that, too," Willow said. "I have computer class first thing this morning."

Cordelia sighed in relief. "Thanks, Jenny. Thanks, Willow."

"I can help too, you know," Xander said eagerly.

"The only way you can help about the Judge is if somehow he's related to Judge Judy," Buffy snarked. "If you guys don't mind, I'm getting outta here. I got a change of clothes in my locker and classes are gonna start soon."

"Yeah, cuz God forbid you wear the same outfit twice in one week!" Xander snarked back.

Buffy rolled her eyes and headed out, flipping her golden blonde hair over her shoulder.

As Willow and Cordelia walked out after Buffy, Cordelia confided her worries to Willow. Xander followed a few paces behind them, but couldn't hear anything. Wesley decided to stay in the library and look through the stacks for something on the Judge while Jenny Calendar went to her classroom to make a call to her uncle.

###

After school, Cordelia went out on the town in search of Angel while the rest of the Scooby Gang returned to the library for research.

She went back to Angel's apartment and found him in the arms of another woman, one with dark hair like hers. She didn't recognize her but the cheap fake leopard coat and the red high heels indicated to Cordelia that she was some kind of streetwalker.

"Angel!" Cordelia cried. "What the goddamn hell are you doing?"

"Who is she?" The dark haired woman asked.

"Nobody important, baby," Angel said, eyes on Cordelia. "Just someone who was all talk and no action."

Cordelia ran out of the apartment, covering her ears as she heard the dark haired woman scream in both agony and ecstasy. She wasn't sure if Angel was draining the woman or turning her, but in spite of her inner Slayer telling her to kick their asses, she couldn't get the images of Angel and that other woman out of her head.

###

 _Sunnydale High School Library_

Behind the stacks, Xander found Buffy browsing and said, "Sorry for what I said before."

"You mean when you said I had no feelings or when you were all too eager to play superhero for Cordy?"

"Cordy's my best friend."

"Yeah and so is Willow. Which girl did you try asking out to the Junior Prom last year again?"

"Come on, Buffy, let's just kiss and make up."

"No way! I'm done kissing you Xander! You're a good kisser and we had some great make out sessions for the past couple weeks, but I always end up regretting it after."

"Because of what your friends might think?"

"That's one reason."

Xander huffed in frustration and turned around to leave the stacks only to come face to face with Willow, who dropped the book she held in her hands.

"Willow-" Xander said.

Buffy rolled her eyes and walked out of the stacks using the other staircase. She left the library as she heard Xander and Willow arguing. As she walked into the hallway, all the lights went out. Angel stood at the end of the hallway.

"Oh great, it's you!" Buffy said. "You know, your little girlfriend was looking for you."

"I know," Angel said.

Buffy rolled her eyes and walked closer to Angel only for Jenny to appear at the stairs.

"Buffy! Stop!" Jenny said.

Buffy looked up, wondering what was going on, only for Angel to grab her by her throat. She let out a piercing scream and the rest of the Scoobies came out of the library. Xander held up a cross and Angel immediately stepped back, his grip still strong on Buffy. It was clear to everyone that the Angel they knew was gone.

"Let her go, Angel!" Xander said.

"What do you want?" Willow asked.

"I want to send a message to your friend," Angel said.

"Then tell me yourself, baby," Cordelia said. Angel turned around and grinned evilly at his former lover.

"It's not exactly a message you write down, Cordy. It's more of one where you find the bodies of all your friends. Except for her," he indicated Buffy. "I might just turn her."

"Oh please!" Buffy said. "I'd rather stake myself than spend eternity as your girlfriend."

"There was a time when you thought I was attractive, too, you know," Angel said.

"Yeah, for like a millisecond. I'm not into tall, dark, and brooding. I like guys with a bit more bite!" Buffy bit down hard on Angel, who dropped her in a reflex reaction. Buffy ran off to the library while she heard the sound of Angel kissing Cordelia before making a run for it.

Back in the library, the Scoobies asked Jenny what she found out about the Judge and how she knew that Buffy was in danger. The Gypsy woman revealed her secret: that she was descended from the family of gypsies who cursed Angel.

"The curse would be broken when Angel experiences a moment of pure happiness," Jenny said.

"Why didn't you tell us before?" Wesley asked.

"I honestly didn't know until now," Jenny said.

While Wesley and Jenny argued, Cordelia blanched as she realized what she did. "It's my fault." The tears of shame that ran down her face turned into rage. "That brooding bastard is gonna pay!"

"Um hello," Buffy said. "In case you forgot, Angel is now working with a demon who can't be killed by any forged weapons."

Xander raised his hand. "Willow and I actually have an idea." He explained a weapon that could take down the Judge.

"But there's still a matter of knowing where the Judge will be," Wesley said. "And finding someone with a vehicle that can hold a weapon that size."

"I know someone," Willow said. "I'll go call him."

While Willow went to make a phone call, the rest of them speculated on possible places the Judge would go.

"He'll probably look for places with lots of people," Wesley said. "A place where crowds are easily formed."

"There's not a lot of choices in Sunnydale outside of the Bronze," Cordelia said. "It's not like people are gonna line up to get massacred."

Buffy's eyes widened and she gasped. "I think I know where I would go if I wanted to find a good crowd right now."

###

The first thing the Scooby Gang did was "acquire" the weapon Xander needed from the nearby army base. Then, at the mall, Cordelia blasted the Judge to pieces while Angelus and Drusilla escaped. Well, Drusilla escaped intact. Angelus, on the other hand, left the mall limping after Cordelia kicked him in the balls.

When Cordelia returned home, she finally let herself have a moment to cry as she fell asleep.

The next thing Cordelia knew, she found herself surrounded by darkness. Drusilla appeared in front of her, floating like a ghost. Cordelia growled at her.

"What do you want?" Cordelia asked.

"Shadows and mirrors…" Drusilla said. "Two sides of the same coin."

A light appeared behind Cordelia, revealing her shadow. As Drusilla disappeared, Cordelia saw the silhouette of her shadow standing in front of a mirror. The shadow took on the form of Buffy Summers while the reflection in the mirror was that of Spike, that bleached blonde Texan vampire.

"It happened to me," Spike said.

"It could've happened to me," Buffy said.

Buffy turned to look at the mirror and kissed Spike affectionately, with Spike returning the blonde cheerleader's kiss.

Cordelia turned around and saw a heart-shaped window, with Xander standing outside in a beautiful field.

"It's not your fault," Xander said. "It was never your fault."

A bright light shone from the window...and Cordelia opened her eyes. She took out her dream journal from her nightstand drawer and wrote as much of her dream as she could remember. As she read over her journal entry, one question lingered in the Slayer's mind: "What does any of this have to do with Angel?"

* * *

You'll get to see how things got to the way they are now in the next chapter. But I hope this is enough to get you interested.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter takes place during _Phases_ and includes scenes from _School Hard_ and _Halloween_.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

* * *

The next morning, Cordelia went straight to the library and told Wesley about the dream she had.

"I just don't understand why Buffy and Spike appeared in my dream at all," Cordelia said.

"Well, how did they interact with each other?" Wesley asked.

###

 _A few months ago…_

Cordelia sighed as she struggled to concentrate on her French homework. "I am seriously glad that I test well because I cannot translate French right now. You'd think that the Bronze's Country Western Night would be a bit quieter."

"It's not the French or the loud music," Willow said. "It's Angel missage."

Cordelia pouted. "You're right."

Xander walked up to their table and said, "Hey, you guys in need of a break? I'm seriously digging this song."

Cordelia smiled at Xander, trying to push away the fluttering she felt.

Meanwhile, up on the balcony, Buffy was laughing with her friends over the latest gossip.

"I gotta say, I'm majorly loving this band," Gwen said.

Harmony nodded. "I know. Don't you wanna come down from here and get dancing?"

"It's kind of a slow song right now," Aura said, stirring the straw in her pink lemonade.

"Aura's right," Buffy said as she got up. "I'm gonna go down to get a refill." As she looked down the stairs, she saw a guy dressed in a long black leather coat, a black vest over a gray shirt, heavy black cowboy boots, and a red scarf tied around his neck. His dirty blonde hair moved wildly as he sauntered into the room. Buffy's eyes widened and she smiled at the sight of him.

Looking back to her girls, she said, "I think I just found me a tall drink of water!" The other three Buffettes watched as their fearless leader went down the stairs to the hottie in the cowboy boots.

The cowboy looked around the room as the band began playing a slow song. As he got close to the dance floor, a beautiful blonde descended from the stairs leading up to a loft. His eyes met a pair of beautiful hazel orbs that sparkled in the dim light.

"Hello, darlin!" he said, his southern drawl dripping from his lips like honey.

"Howdy, stranger," Buffy said. "You wanna dance?"

He flashed a Cheshire cat smile at her and took her by the hand. A couple of guys who looked more like they came from around town scurried to him but he dismissed them with a wave of his hand. Buffy smiled as she felt the cowboy's strong arms wrap around her waist and shoulders.

"I thought guys like you only knew line dancing," Buffy said, flashing her best smile at him.

"I'm full of surprises, sunshine," he said.

"Funny, I don't think I caught your name."

"Never gave it to you," he said.

Buffy draped her arms around his shoulders and pouted. "Won't you show a little Southern hospitality to a lady like me and tell me?"

"William Buchanan," the cowboy said, tipping the brim of an invisible hat at her. "And what might be the name of the California rose in my arms?"

"Buffy Summers," Buffy said.

"Well, Buffy, what do you say that after this dance we can go outside and get to know each other better."

Buffy bit her lip. "It's kinda cold out."

William leaned in and whispered, "No need to worry, darlin. I'll keep you warm."

A shiver went up Buffy's spine. She couldn't resist as the cowboy led her out of the nightclub. She took a glance up to the loft and saw Harmony pouting with jealousy at the two of them.

Meanwhile, Cordelia, Xander, and Willow were watching the spectacle of the cowboy dancing with Sunnydale High's queen bee.

"They sure got outta here quickly," Xander said.

"Talk about slut-o-rama!" Cordelia said. "But most guys around here don't dress like they came out of Tombstone." Realization blossomed in the brunette Slayer's eyes as she grabbed her purse and sprinted out of the club.

Out in the alley, Buffy giggled as William pushed her up against the adjacent wall. "It's a little soon for an eight second ride, cowboy," Buffy said, trying to keep cool.

"No need to worry, sweet pea," he said as he nibbled on her ear. "I just want a taste…"

All of a sudden the cowboy felt himself being pulled away from the blonde and thrown down to the other side of the alley.

"Hey! I saw him first!" Buffy said.

"Trust me, Buffy," Cordelia said. "This guy is not your type."

Buffy huffed and stormed her way back until the other guys who came with William started attacking Cordelia. The cowboy's face shifted from the smooth, chiseled pretty boy face into a hard, bumpy face with yellow eyes and fangs as he stepped away from the fight. Buffy took several steps back, hiding in the shadows as Cordelia staked William's minions. Then she heard one of them call the cowboy "Spike."

After the dust settled, Spike made his presence known again with a series of slow claps. "Nice work, Slayer girl."

"Who are you?" Cordelia asked.

"You'll find out Saturday," Spike said with a very cool air.

"What happens Saturday?"

"I kill you." He gave a two-fingered flick of his hand and sauntered off.

Cordelia chased the vampire, but he disappeared after making another turn. The brunette Slayer groaned in frustration, went back to the alley, and turned her attention to Buffy. "Buffy, I know you're not gonna like hearing this…"

A few days later, Spike found himself meeting the blunt end of a fire axe. He turned to see Buffy looming over him with an angry glare that could send a herd of wild bulls running. Not wanting to face two women intent on killing him, Spike ran out of the school back to his lady love.

###

"Last thing I remember was that Buffy attacked Spike with the fire axe when he and his cronies attacked the school during Parent-Teacher Night," Cordelia said. "It was kind of cool."

"So it's safe to assume that she understands Spike's true nature," Wesley said. "Was there anything else peculiar about the dream?"

"I kind of understand Buffy and Spike kissing each other because Buffy was attracted to Spike, but the other weird part was the heart-shaped window and Xander telling me 'It's not my fault.' I honestly don't know what he's talking about."

Wesley shrugged. "Well, what's most important is making sure that Spike and Drusilla don't hurt anyone else. You should ask Buffy about the last time she saw Spike."

Cordelia huffed. "Yeah. That's about as likely to happen as me getting Larry to stop harassing me. But I'll try."

###

Buffy scoffed when she saw Cordelia waiting for her in the girls' restroom.

"What does she want?" Harmony asked.

"Let me talk to her," Buffy said. "I can handle her by myself."

The blonde cheerleader walked over to Cordelia, hands on hips, while the other Buffettes left the ladies room. "What do you want, she who hangs out in cemeteries?"

"When was the last time that you saw Spike?" Cordelia asked.

Buffy blushed as she flashed back to Halloween of the previous year…

###

 _Halloween Night_

Buffy looked around the alleyway, searching for the little black cat that once was Cordelia. The hem of her scarlet dress was starting to fray.

"Stupid Cordelia," Buffy mumbled to herself. "You _had_ to pick out that stupid cat costume from Ethan's."

"Well, well," a husky Texan twang said. "Seems like Little Bo Peep has lost her sheep."

Buffy scoffed as she put her hands on her hips. "For your information, fang face, I am not Little Bo Peep! I am Scarlett O'Hara from Gone with the Wind."

Spike's eyes raked over her, smiling at what he saw. The girl in front of him was standing tall in a dark red hoop dress with black gloves that went all the way up to her elbow. Her hair was done up with dark curls framing her face. He walked closer to her and took a good sniff. He growled in disappointment when he smelled the fragrance of a spring breeze and hyancinth flowers.

"You're not the Slayer!" Spike groaned. "Where is she?"

"Cordelia the Cat?" Buffy asked. "Like I'm gonna tell you!"

"She's a cat?! Lord have mercy, Drusilla knows how to make an understatement."

Buffy scoffed. "Who's Drusilla?"

"Frankly, my dear, she is none of your business." Spike turned away and left the alley.

She took off her wig and threw it down out of frustration. She tried to shake off the heat she felt rising in her face and went back to searching for Cordelia the Cat.

###

"I honestly don't know," Buffy said. "But I thought you and that Kendra girl buried him underneath a church organ two months ago."

"Well the reports of his dusting have been greatly exaggerated," Cordelia said. "He and Dru captured me and Angel when the Judge was assembled."

"Oh. Is that why Angel is all grr arrgh now?" Buffy asked.

"Um...sure," Cordelia said half-heartedly. "This is gonna sound weird, but since Angelus has gone to the dark side and tried getting you, he might go after you again or get Spike and Dru to capture you. So you sure about not seeing Spike since the parent-teacher night?"

"Well, I kinda ran into him on Halloween. He thought I was you."

"And that's all?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Just want to make sure you don't get killed or turned. I may hate you, but you don't deserve to die at the hands of a vampire or at the business end of my stake."

"Likewise. If I could handle using a stake, I mean."

Cordelia gave a friendly smile to Buffy and left the bathroom.

As soon as Cordelia left, Buffy washed her hands and looked at herself in the mirror. "You have got to stop thinking about him. He's a vampire, he's a killer and he's got a girlfriend. It doesn't matter how hot he is. You can't want him. Because it's wrong."

Buffy washed her face, taking on a new steely resolve, and left the bathroom.

###

The rest of the week was relatively normal, or as normal as things got on the Hellmouth. Buffy went out to Lover's Lane with the star quarterback, making out with him underneath the full moon and trying her best not to picture a certain dirty blonde with a Southern drawl. Their makeout session was interrupted when a huge beast attacked them. It was a werewolf.

On top of trying to figure out who the werewolf was, Cordelia had to deal with one of her classmates being sired by Angel. She cried in Xander's arms after putting a stake into Marcie's chest.

"Marcie always felt so invisible," Cordelia said. "She couldn't resist attention from someone like Angel. God, Xander it's my fault she's dead! It's all my fault."

"It's not your fault, Cordy," Xander said, tenderly embracing her. He kissed her on the forehead, just to comfort her. As he let go, Cordelia saw the loving expression in his eyes and kissed him straight on the mouth.

The kiss was soft. It didn't have any tongue. But it felt like such a relief compared to the desperate kisses she and Angel shared a mere week ago.

"Thanks for saying that," Cordelia said as she let go. "I don't know if I can believe it. But thanks for saying it."

Realizing what just happened, Xander dashed out of the funeral home in a heap of confusion.

Eventually, the identity of the werewolf was revealed and the guy hunting him was quickly sent packing. Cordelia took a cold shower after everything was over, trying to shake off what she did to Xander. She blamed it on hormones or on seeing Xander as a potential rebound guy from Angel. She knew that the man she loved was gone, but she can't drag one of her best friends into the drama.

As Cordelia went to bed, she couldn't help but wish that she could share her problems with someone. But Willow was in a happy post-kissage official girlfriend of a werewolf state and Wesley wouldn't really understand. Instead, Cordelia wrote everything down in her diary. Little did she know that outside of her house, Angelus watched from a nearby tree, waiting for her to fall asleep.

* * *

Uh oh. What do you think will happen to Cordelia? Why is Buffy so hot for Spike? Is Spike thinking of her, too? And how will things work out with Xander and Cordy? Find out in the next chapter.


End file.
